Featured Episodes

Oakland, California, has had the reputation of being one of the most dangerous cities in the country. Then the Restorative Justice movement started boldly showing how quickly that reputation can be turned around by arresting the cycle of youth vio…

Family ties are part of the fabric of American roots music. How often have we read that Artist X “came from a musical family”? The connection among siblings and the passing of ideas across generations might be the central reason this music sus…

Actor Channing Tatum and director Steven Soderbergh go rogue with their independently produced and distributed comic heist movie, “Logan Lucky.” Tatum plays a fired miner who decides to rip off all the cash for a big race at the Charlotte Motor Speedway. He recruits a ragtag posse of hayseed thieves for a complicated caper. The terrific cast includes Adam Driver, Seth MacFarlane, Daniel Craig and Hilary Swank. Soderbergh seems to be doing a self-parody of his best-known movie. So, you could call this goofy but entertaining popcorn flick, “Redneck Ocean’s 11.”

Ryan Reynolds and Samuel L. Jackson, two extremely likable actors, give a big boost to “The Hitman’s Bodyguard,” an overlong and violent action comedy about a protection agent escorting a hired killer to testify at a trial at the International Court of Justice in The Hague. There’s not a moment of credibility in this over-the-top farce, but it has wild stunts, lengthy car chases and plenty of R-rated mayhem for fans of the genre.

“Saturday Night Live’s” Kyle Mooney stars in and co-wrote the offbeat comedy, “Brigsby Bear.” It’s a high-concept, low-key tale about a man, kidnapped at birth and raised in isolation. When he’s freed at age 25, he attempts to complete the story of a children’s TV show he was raised on. It’s odd, but surprisingly sweet.

Also opening this week, “Whose Streets?” is a documentary about the uprising in Ferguson, Missouri. “Wind River” is a suspense drama starring Jeremy Renner about mysterious deaths on a Native American reservation. “Paint it Black” is a drama about the difficult dynamic that evolves between a suicide victim’s mother and girlfriend. “Kuso” is a horror film set in the aftermath of an LA earthquake. “Dave Made a Maze” is a horror comedy about a man trapped in a cardboard maze of his own creation. “68 Kill” is described as a punk-rock romantic comedy about a young woman and her boyfriend who decide to rip off her older sugar daddy. Catherine Deneuve stars in the French drama “The Midwife” about the relationship that develops between a woman and her late father’s mistress.

Perhaps the most controversial film of the year, “Detroit” recounts story of the infamous Algiers Motel incident during the 1967 riots in Motor City. Oscar-winning director Kathryn Bigelow (“The Hurt Locker”) re-teams with screenwriter (“Zero Dark Thirty”) to tell the tale of police brutality and murder.

We are showcasing three authors who have published original and captivating novels: Jessica Webb for “Pathogen,” a medical thriller”; “RJ Samuel for An Outsider Inside,” a book about an Indian-Irish main character; and Stefani Deoul for “On a Larp,” a young adult steampunk thriller. As an additional bonus on a bonus radio book club show author Fay Jacobs joins Stefani to talk about “On a Larp.” Philip Hooser is hosting while Elizabeth Andersen is in British Columbia. These interviews were recorded in Chicago at the Golden Crown Literary Awards annual convention.

The Harcros chemical company was recently fined for illegally storing environmentally sensitive material in their Wyandotte County locale. The Kansas Sierra Club’s Elaine Geisel returns to the program to bring us up to speed. Also, are there plans afoot to foul the Flint Hills? Flint Hills Stewards, Elexa Dawson and Karla Jo Grimmett let us know about the proposed high-pressure injection of wastewater into the Flint Hills.

On The Inside Looking Out – The Jackson County Jail And Courts Revealed

There has been a lot of news about the Jackson County Jail lately, but much less about the system that keeps the jail populated. We have heard the sensational story of the inmate, the public defender and the guards but that is not the story that should shock the public, not by a long shot. On this Edition of Jaws of Justice Radio we bring you the story of two men one convicted with no real evidence (even the Judge agreed) and another trying to make his case of innocence from behind bars.

Host Latahra Smith talks with Ray Johnson about being behind bars for over a year only to have his Public Defender leave because of a family issue and pass his case off to another Public Defender pushing his trial another 6 months or more down the road. Ray will tell how his case illustrates the failure of the Public Defenders system in Missouri, what conditions are like in the jail and how despite a court order to be allowed access to the law library every other day has not been once in almost 3 months.
website – freerayjohnson.com will be up soon

Then Latahra Smith will talk with Dekesha Cornelius about her brother Dwayne Cornelius’s trial and conviction for a crime he did not commit. During the sentencing phase Dekesha pointed out that there was no evidence to prove her brother was guilty and the judge agreed, then sentenced him anyway.
Email to contact support group – [email protected]
website coming this fall

The Calendar for August 14th

The Greater Kansas City Justice coalition will have their monthly meeting Tuesday August 15th 4:30 to 6 PM aat the Kansas City Missouri Health Department, 2400 Troost Ave, KCMO. The will have local and national speakers addressing the privatization of education and what can be done to address the Trump administration’s education policies.
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The KCMO Branch of the NAACP membership meeting will be Tuesday August 15th at 6:30 PM at Brush Creek Community Center, Cleveland and Emmanuel Cleaver II Boulevard, KCMO. There will be a short business meeting followed by a presentation on the Missouri travel advisory issued by the Missouri and National NAACP.
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The KC chapter of Mothers in Charge, Healing Support Group will be meeting Thursday August 17th from 5-7 PM at the Robert J Mohart Multipurpose Center, Suite 124 W, 3200 Wayne Ave, KCMO. This group is for people who have lost loved ones to murder and violence. The first hour will be sharing of experiences and in the second hour therapists and others who can who can help navigate the emotional and legal terrain will be available. For more information you can find them on the web at www.kcmothersincharge.org or call them at 816-912-2601.
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This week on the Heartland Labor Forum, the topic is workers across borders and workers who cross borders. We’ll ask David Wilson, who has just updated The Politics of Immigration, “Do immigrants really take jobs from the rest of us and lower wages?”Then, we’ll talk to Corinne Goria, whose new book Invisible Hands: Voices from the Global Economy introduces us to phone manufacturers in China, copper miners in Zambia, garment workers in Bangladesh, and farmers around the world. Tune in Thursday at 6pm, rebroadcast Friday at 5am.

The term “uplifting” is often overused, but it’s apt when describing “Step,” a documentary about a step dancing team from an all-girls high school in inner city Baltimore. Don’t expect lots of dance footage, however. “Step” instead focuses on the personal struggles of several team members, all of whom face unique challenges. The film shows how the work and discipline of the dance team help the girls in their academic and personal lives.

It’s virtually impossible not to get caught up in these girls’ lives and enthusiastically root them on. That makes the climatic dance competition all the more compelling. “Step” is an involving documentary in step with the times.

Oscar-winner Brie Larson stars in the big screen adaptation of Jeannette Walls’s best-selling memoir about her difficult upbringing in a family run by two very eccentric parents. Larson is fine as the adult Jeannette, but young actresses Ella Anderson and Chandler Head are equally good as the childhood versions. How well this movie works for you may relay on your reaction to Woody Harrelson as the family’s iconoclastic, alcoholic patriarch and Naomi Watts as Jeannette’s spacey artist mom.

Director Destin Daniel Cretton takes a sincere approach, but the movie never achieves the authenticity he achieved with his earlier collaboration with Larson, the touching film about at-risk teens, “Short Term 12.” Chalk up “The Glass Castle” as a near miss.

Also opening this week, “The Only Living Boy in New York” is a drama starring Callum Turner about an aimless recent college grad who winds up having an affair with his father’s mistress. Kate Beckinsale, Pierce Brosnan and Jeff Bridges co-star. “Annabelle: Creation” is yet another horror film in the “Conjuring” franchise. “Nut Job 2: Nutty by Nature” is a sequel to the 2014 animated tale featuring Surly Squirrel.

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